Glenn Dean Biography

Glenn Dean Biography

Glenn recognized his interest for art at the age of 13, however, he didn't realize his love for painting the landscape until his early 20's. His path became clear when he first saw examples of work by the Early California and Western landscape painters of the early 1900’s. “Their work emphasized the importance of seeing the color of light combined with interesting compositions and seemingly effortless designs, while carefully observing the simple and basic characteristics of a specific location.”

Basically a self-taught artist, Glenn has a passion and joy for discovering answers to the complexities found in the works of the past masters. Glenn strives for a similar quality in his work and uses the past masters as a standard to check his own work against. “The early painters incorporated good use of the principles of aesthetic art”. Glenn believes that their paintings revealed the spiritual element of the landscape, which he feels should be the goal of the landscape painter.

Glenn gained recognition in the art world at a relatively young age. He has appeared in several national magazines including Southwest Art, Art of the West, and American Artist. Glenn has won a number of awards, including the first ever “Emerging Artist Award” presented by Art and Antiques magazine. He is also the recipient of the Grand Prize and Artists Choice awards at the inaugural Tucson/Sonoran Desert Museum Plein Air Invitational.

Glenn’s goal as an artist is to bring honor and glory to God through painting the best he can with the gifts and tools that have been given to him.

Glenn paints on-location throughout the Southwest, dividing his time between deserts, mountains, and coastal subjects. Glenn feels that time in the field and in the studio are equally important. In his studio, Glenn develops larger compositions worked from field studies and other references. After living in New Mexico for nearly 4 years, Glenn has returned to his native state of California, where he lives on the Central Coast.

  • 2013 - "Distant Giant" placed in the permanent collection, National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, OK
  • 2013 - Golden Thunderbird Award, Maynard Dixon Country, Carmel, Utah
  • 2007 -  Kelman-Ortiz award, Torrey Pines Plein Air Painting Invitational
  • 2003 - Grand Prize and Artist Choice Award, Arizona- Sonoran Desert Museum Painting Invitational 
  • 2002 - Honorable Mention, San Luis Obispo Painting Festival, San Luis Obispo, CA
  • 2002 - Best Miniature Painting Award, 8th Annual Mission San Juan Capistrano Painting Festival, San Juan Capistrano Mission, Capistrano, CA
  • 2001 - Inaugural Emerging Artist Award, Art and Antiques Magazine, Carmel Art Festival
  • 2001 - Honorable Mention Award, San Juan Capistrano Painting Festival
  • 2021 "Echoes from the West" Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2021 "Prix de West" Oklahoma City, OK
  • 2019 "Prix de West" Oklahoma City, OK
  • 2019 "New Works" Group Show, Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2019 "Along the Distant Mesa: An Homage to Maynard Dixon" Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2017 "25th Anniversary Celebration" Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2015 “Three Point Perspective: Dean, Elliott, and Hagage” Booth Western Art Museum, Cartersville, GA
  • 2013 - Young Guns: Three of the Nation's Top Western Artists Under 40, Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2012 - Landscapes of the West, Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
  • 2012 - 14th Annual Maynard Dixon Country, Mt. Carmel, Utah
  • 2012 - 4th Annual Small Works Show and Sale, Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
  • 2004 – 2009 - Maynard Dixon Country (invited artist)
  • 2007-2009 - Coors Western Art Show (invited artist)
  • 2007 - Torrey Pines Plein Air Painting competition (invited artist)
  • 2005 – Solo Show and Sale – Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2004 - "The Vanishing West" - One Man Show, Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2004 - The Empire 100, Western Art Show, Northern Trust Bank, Tucson, AZ
  • 2004 - Artists of the Grand Canyon, Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Tucson, AZ
  • 2003 - California Art Club 93rd Annual Gold Medal Exhibition, Pasadena Museum of Art, Pasadena, CA
  • 2003 - 7th Annual Plein Air Art Exhibition Invitational, "Sights of Southern California" - Bowers Museum, Santa Ana, CA
  • 2003 - Mission San Juan Capistrano Invitational Plein Air Painting Festival, CA
  • 2003 - The 5th Annual Laguna Beach Plein Air Painting Invitational, Laguna, CA
  • 2003 - "Wanderlust" One Man Show, Mark Sublette Medicine Man Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
  • 2003 - "Empire Ranch Show", Tucson, AZ
  • 2002 - "Lincoln Plein Air Painting Invitational" (invited artist), Laguna Beach, CA
  • 2002 - LPAPA signature member show, Laguna Beach, CA
  • 2002 - 92nd Annual California Art Club Gold Medal Juried Exhibition, Pasadena, CA
  • 2002 - "Painting the Parks", Estes Park 2002, Estes Park, CO
  • 2002 - "Two Man Show", Glenn Dean & Phil Starke, Villas & Verandas, San Juan Capistrano, CA.
  • 2002 - Mission San Juan Capistrano Invitational Plein Air Painting Festival, CA. "Young Brushes II"
  • 2002 - Carmel Art Festival, Plein Air Painting Competition, Carmel, CA.
  • 2002 - Beaux Arts Bash, Scottsdale Artist’s School, Scottsdale, AZ.
  • 2002 - La Quinta Arts Foundation "Desert Plein Air, A Celebration of Outdoor Painting"
  • 2001 – 91st Annual California Art Club Gold Medal Juried Exhibition, Pasadena, CA
  • Western Art Collector, November 2021
  • Southwest Art, March/April 2021, feature article
  • Western Art Collector, November 2019
  • Art of the West, July-August 2019
  • Western Art Collector, February 2019
  • "Maynard Dixon's American West: Along the Distant Mesa" by Mark Sublette, 2018
  • Western Art Collector, December 2018
  • Western Art Collector, November 2018
  • Western Art Collector, February 2018
  • Southwest Art, February 2018
  • Western Art Collector, December 2017
  • Western Art Collector, November 2017
  • Western Art Collector, November 2015
  • Western Art Collector, March 2015
  • Western Art Collector, August 2014
  • Plein Air Magazine, June/July 2014
  • Art of the West, March/April 2014
  • Western Art Collector, October 2013
  • Western Art Collector, April 2013
  • Fine Art Today, February 2013
  • Western Art Collector, February 2013
  • Santa Fean, June/July 2012
  • Santa Fean Magazine, December 2009
  • Western Art Collector, December 2009
  • American Art Collector, June 2009
  • Art of the West magazine, January - February 2008
  • Western Art Collector Magazine, feature article, November 2007
  • Southwest Art magazine, feature article, November 2004
  • American Artist Magazine, feature article "The Big Lessons", June 2003
  • Art Talk, May 2003
  • Southwest Art magazine, "News Makers" May 2003
  • Southwest Art magazine, Inaugural "21 under 31" 2000